Thessia
by Evilblood
Summary: An elven apostate who has never seen the inside of the tower is taken when she tries to help the Mage Underground in Kirkwall. Hawke has darker motives than Varric anticipates. Cullen wants to get to the bottom of strange happenings, but needs to trust the new apostate to do so. AU.


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If you listened hard enough, the Templar's made music. I could count the guard rotations just by listening. Their marching reminded me of the ancient elven wars my father would tell me about before bed. If I stood by the barred window, I could close my eyes and pretend I was watching these ancient armies march by-the cold morning air fresh on my face as I wished them well. Doing this every morning became routine...and essential to start the day with a smile. I refused to count how many days and nights I have been locked away from the world. I was not a pirate, eagerly awaiting the day I could escape and tell all my friends. No. No one was coming for me here. I preferred to drift away with my memories. I knew that I would never walk outside as a free woman again.

Four armored steps came down the hall in succinct order, interrupting peaceful thoughts. This many men never came down here at once. Stories from runaway mages flooded my head, making my skin crawl. Templar's were not known for their polite manners, at least not by mages.

"The Knight-Commander ordered this one to be carefully watched. She gave herself willingly, but we have reason to believe she has knowledge on the mage underground. Now, bring her up for interrogation," one man commanded the others as they approached. His words gave me comfort, though nerves still ate at my insides. I stayed by my window, eyes closed, trying to convince myself this was happening to someone else far away.

The men finally came to my cell and were silent for a moment. My heartbeat slowed and so I turned, feeling the sun warm my back. It almost felt as if Papa was there, nudging me forward to have courage. As I looked these men in the face, I decided I would have courage.

"This way, Mage," the oldest Templar ordered. Now there were only three? No, the fourth stayed silent in the dark, watching. I kept my head held high, like Papa always said to, and started walking. The Templars formed a circle around me, two to either side, one in front, and the fourth man I couldn't see in back.

The walk was silent except for the Templar's strange music. It bothered my ears this close to the sound. The youngest Templar wouldn't stop looking at me. He reminded me of a farm boy I met who gave me apples. I smiled at him, nodding my head in greeting. He looked away in an instant, face turning an awful shade of red. Still smiling, I looked at the other Templar at my side. He was glaring rather rudely.

"Bernard, guard the rear," the Templar from the back ordered. The unit stopped, almost making me fall into the lead Templar's back.

"Yes Knight-Captain!"A tall, serious man took Bernard's place. He glared more harshly than that other fellow. Without missing a beat the patrol moved along, bringing me with it. The Knight-Captain didn't spare me another glance until they lead me into a room with a desk and two chairs on either side of it.

"Sit, Mage," the Knight-Captain ordered as the rest of the men filed into the room, standing along the far wall. There were bookshelves, a few swords, and another door on the far left.

"Should I sit behind the desk, Knight-Captain? Or in front of it?" I asked as politely as I could. I couldn't hide my smile, even if I wanted to.

"In front of the desk, Mage," the Knight-Captain growled. I nodded and carefully sat down in the desk without moving it. I sat on my hands, hoping it would prompt these knights to be more friendly. The Knight-Captain sat behind his own desk, making far more ruckus than I did. He put his elbows on his desk and stared me down. I stared right back, smiling even. I already knew what they would do with me when they were done with their questions. Tranquility or death. Same thing, really. I would have a little fun with my captors before my life ended.

"What is your name?" he finally asked, sitting back in his seat, looking unimpressed by my smiling face.

I was too pleased to tell them, maybe then they would stop calling me Mage. "Thessia Surana."

"What Circle do you belong to?"

"None."

"None?"

"I have lived my life as a free mage, until now." He looked puzzled but nodded nevertheless.

"We will need to get a phylactery for you. Bernard, please do that," he instructed.

"What's that?"

"A phylactery?"

I nodded.

"It's a vial that is filled with a bit of your blood. Every mage gets one when they enter the circle. It will help us find you if you runaway," he explained carefully. His gaze wasn't as harsh as it once was. Me not being a runaway somehow made me better in his eyes.

"Blood? Why my blood? Don't you hate blood magic? Why can't you use my hair?" Panic bubbled a little inside my chest. Every keeper I came across said that blood related rituals were dangerous. This was like that, wasn't it?

"Don't worry. This isn't blood magic. We Templars are trained to use them to find you, no magic involved." His mouth quirked a little and I didn't appreciate it. It wasn't funny that a Templar knew more about magic than I did.

"Why bother giving me one? Don't you make all stray mages Tranquil?" I asked bitterly. It could be considered rude, but as he grew happier with every answered question, I grew angrier.

He smiled, "Rumors from mage propaganda. The Rite of Tranquility is only used when absolutely necessary. But you came with us willingly and have never been educated properly by a Circle. You will start an apprenticeship after you tell us what you can about the mage underground."

I turned away from the Knight-Captain. I was going to spend the rest of my life as a glorified prisoner? Ending my life as a free woman seemed favorable. Bernard came bumbling in, demanding my attention with his loud gait. He kneels on the floor, getting ready the tools with which he would steal my freedom forever. He smiled up at me though, apologetically, "This will only hurt a little. It helps if you look away."

As he started to prick me with a needle I decided he needed to know this was a defeat for me. "If I look away," he stopped what he was doing to give me his attention, "then I won't be able to tell people what getting my freedom sucked out of me felt like."

"Sorry, Lady Thessia," Bernard said, his head down as he pushed the needle through my skin. I glanced up at the Knight-Captain, who was now glowering. I smiled back down at Bernard, knowing that Hawke and Anders would be proud of me.


End file.
